BLOOMINGTON — Lilly Endowment Inc. has awarded a transformative $5 million grant to the Indiana University Foundation that will allow the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University to strengthen its ability to connect people with art in meaningful ways. The investment will expand the museum’s capacity to welcome new audiences, deepen community relationships and create more engaging experiences for visitors across Indiana.
“The Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art has long stood among the top university art museums in the country,” IU President Pamela Whitten said. “This generous support from Lilly Endowment Inc. will help ensure that the Eskenazi Museum and the IU Bloomington campus continue to connect Hoosiers and visitors from around the world with collections and programs that inspire curiosity and advance scholarship while contributing to Indiana’s economic and cultural vitality.”
The museum’s initiative centers on building a stronger foundation for sustained public impact through three interconnected areas of investment:
- Listening to audiences to shape the museum’s future: To better understand and serve the communities for which it exists, the museum will undertake a comprehensive audience study exploring visitors’ interests, motivations, values and barriers to engagement. These insights will guide a revitalized strategic plan, inform a refreshed brand and marketing strategy, and shape public programs that deepen relationships with existing audiences while welcoming new communities.
- Creating more welcoming, accessible and engaging experiences for every visitor: Building on the museum’s transformative 2019 renovation, the grant will enhance the spaces and technologies that shape the visitor experience from arrival to departure. A resurfaced terrace will expand opportunities for outdoor programming, sculpture exhibitions, and community events. A reconfiguration of the café and gift shop will enhance visitor amenities through expanded kitchen and retail capacity, while a redesigned entry sequence will improve guest reception and wayfinding. New audio and projection equipment in the time-based media gallery will create a state-of-the-art viewing experience and expand the museum’s ability to present innovative digital works.
- Building stronger relationships through storytelling and outreach: The museum will strengthen its ability to engage audiences by telling its story more effectively and reaching people where they are. A refreshed brand and marketing strategy will anchor a comprehensive outreach campaign featuring new storytelling across the web, social media and other platforms to strengthen the museum’s identity within the IU community, across the region and beyond. Staff training will build organizational capacity in storytelling, audience engagement and data-informed decision-making, ensuring the museum can cultivate lasting relationships with current and future visitors.
The grant is one of 12 invitational grants that Lilly Endowment is making to help Indiana art museums strengthen and enhance their ability to contribute to cultural vibrancy in their communities and regions.
“This grant represents far more than an investment in facilities and technology; it is an investment in people, relationships and the future of arts engagement in Indiana,” said Mindy N. Besaw, the museum’s Wilma E. Kelley Director. “By strengthening our capacity today, we are creating new opportunities for audiences to experience the power of art in the future. The result will be a more connected, responsive, and resilient museum, one that can serve as a cultural hub for the community and demonstrate a model for how university museums create lasting public value.”
About Lilly Endowment Inc.
Lilly Endowment Inc. is an Indianapolis-based private foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly, Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. Although the gifts of stock remain a financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff, and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education, and religion. The Endowment funds programs throughout the United States, especially in the field of religion, and maintains a special commitment to its founders’ hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana
About the IU Eskenazi Museum of Art
Established in 1941, the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University has grown from a small teaching collection into one of the leading university art museums in the United States. Its collection of more than 47,000 objects spans global cultures and historical periods and supports exhibitions, teaching, research, and public engagement. Designed by I. M. Pei, the museum brings together students, scholars, artists, and the broader public through exhibitions, public programs, interdisciplinary collaboration, and object-based learning.
